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Candlestick patterns. An illustrated guide

20 widely used candlestick patterns, each with a diagram, how to recognize it, and what it says about buyers and sellers. Written in plain English for beginners.

Single-candle
Two-candle
Three-candle
Terms

How to read the diagrams

Green candles closed higher than they opened; red candles closed lower. Faded candles show the trend before the pattern, and the dashed box marks the pattern itself. New to candlesticks? Chapter 1 of the Playbook explains how to read a single candle, free.

Single-candle patterns

One candle on its own, read in the context of the trend before it.

Doji Indecision Open ≈ close. Indecision. Hammer Bullish reversal After decline. Lower shadow ≥ 2× body. Hanging Man Bearish warning Hammer shape after advance. Confirm. Inverted Hammer Bullish, needs confirmation After decline. Upper shadow. Confirm. Shooting Star Bearish reversal After advance. Upper shadow ≥ 2× body. Marubozu Strength / continuation No shadows. Buyers all session. Spinning Top Indecision Small body, shadows both sides.

Two-candle patterns

A candle read together with the one before it.

Bullish Engulfing Bullish reversal Bull body covers prior bear body. Bearish Engulfing Bearish reversal Bear body covers prior bull body. Bullish Harami Loss of downside momentum Small body inside long bear body. Bearish Harami Loss of upside momentum Small body inside long bull body. Piercing Line Bullish reversal Opens low, closes above midpoint. Dark Cloud Cover Bearish reversal Opens high, closes below midpoint. Tweezer Bottoms and Tops Reversal at a tested level Matching lows after decline.

Three-candle patterns

Three candles that together tell a short story.

Morning Star Bullish reversal Bear, star, bull past midpoint. Evening Star Bearish reversal Bull, star, bear past midpoint. Three White Soldiers Bullish reversal / strength Three long bulls, closes near highs. Three Black Crows Bearish reversal / weakness Three long bears, closes near lows. Three Inside Up Bullish reversal Bull harami + close above 1st open. Three Inside Down Bearish reversal Bear harami + close below 1st open.

Candlestick terms

Words you will meet on every pattern page.

Body: The part of a candle between the open and the close.
Shadow (wick): The thin line above or below the body, reaching the session's high or low.
Range: The distance from a candle's high to its low.
Bullish / bearish candle: A candle that closes above its open (bullish) or below its open (bearish).
Gap: A jump between one candle's close and the next candle's open, leaving prices untraded. Rare in markets that trade around the clock.
Trend: The general direction of price: higher highs and higher lows (uptrend), or lower highs and lower lows (downtrend).
Swing high / swing low: A local peak or trough, with lower highs (or higher lows) on both sides.
Support / resistance: Price zones where declines (support) or advances (resistance) have repeatedly stalled.
Reversal pattern: A pattern that suggests the prior move may be ending.
Continuation pattern: A pattern that suggests the prior move may resume.
Confirmation: Price action after a pattern that supports its reading, usually a close beyond a defined level.
Invalidation: Price action that cancels a pattern's reading, usually a close beyond the opposite extreme.
Timeframe: The period one candle represents, such as five minutes, one hour or one day.
Volume: The amount traded during a candle. Spot forex has no central volume; charts show tick volume (the number of price changes) instead.
Relative volume: A candle's volume compared with its recent average, for example the last 20 candles.

Educational content only. Candlestick patterns describe past price action. They do not predict future prices, and they are not trading signals or investment advice. Prices in the diagrams are illustrative.